Summer Climate Garden.
What’s a climate garden:
You can create a climate-friendly garden in your back yard, balcony or even roadside burm simply by nurturing your patch of soil in a way that is as eco-friendly as possible. This means no yucky pesticides, or fertilisers and trying to get as many nutrients in your soil as possible, naturally. Good climate gardens have a whole heap of micro-organisms living within the soil - it’s these organisms that help our plants grow, photosynthesise and pull carbon out of the atmosphere (where we have too much of it) and into the ground (where it belongs), in turn cooling our climate.
It sounds technical right? But it’s really not. All we’re talking about here is growing vegetables and perennials in a natural way, even better if we’re boosting our soil with top-quality compost. Compost breaks down food and garden waste to create a super-jacked soil-food that increases the health of our gardens and allows soil and plants to pull even more carbon from the atmosphere. There’s also the added benefit of growing food locally. Not only is it better for you when there’s no nasties involved but you save on carbon miles (walking into the garden to pull a carrot, versus driving to the supermarket… you get the gist) which is also amazing for our planet.
Start composting at home, or check out Sharewaste to find some compost near you.
Planting hot weather crops from November / December onwards:
Now is the time of year to start preparing and planning your summer garden. Check what seeds you have and what you'll need for when the soil warms. If you are starting with your own seed make sure your pots are clean and sterilised, or weed your soil in preparation.
If you’ve got a compost bin or heap already set up at home, make sure you check whether there will be mature compost ready for use, and if not, check out Sharewaste to find good-quality compost near you.
November/ December Planting:
These vege love the heat:
Tomato
Capsicum
Eggplant
Zucchini
Okra
Beans
Basil
Greens such as Kale, Perpetual Spinach and Collards
These vege prefer a cooler spot in the garden with a bit more shade cover:
Lettuce
Coriander
Peas
Hot Tips:
Soil temperatures need to be at least 18C for most hot weather crops to thrive. A soil themometer will give an accurate reading but if the soil feels warm to your touch it's likely warm enough to plant. They will also fail if there is any frost so depending on your region waiting till later in the month may be wise.
Water your seedlings very very well before transplanting and water the soil where you'll planting really well before putting the seedlings in. Transplant shock - where the seedlings die back, wilt or become stunted - can be preventing by thorough watering. Choose a cooler time of day to transplant or an overcast day, this will help to reduce the stress on the plants.
Ideal conditions:
All hot weather crops need heaps of sun, good air flow and protection from the wind.
Greenthumb Scale:
3/5. Hot weather crops require a moderate level of maintenance, check on them regularly and if you can, harvest throughout the season to encourage more growth.
When to harvest:
Most of these crops grow above ground so you should be able to notice when there is enough to harvest, we’d recommend harvesting throughout the season (Dec, Jan, Feb) to encourage more fruiting.
